Haunted
by May
Summary: When River first starts to awake, she is unsure who is a ghost and who is real. Warning, there are MAJOR movie spoilers.


Title: Haunted  
Rating: PG  
Characters: Mostly River and Simon. Though Mal makes a cameo and the other's thoughts are heard.  
Summary: River's only friends are the ghosts.  
Warning: Movie spoilers.

Word count: 686

Author's Note: All dialogue from the pilot 'Serenity', as well as a lot of the action. Written for the live journal ffFriday.

She thought she was dead, though that did not make any logical sense. She had been alive before; she had been alive and she with Simon. Simon had saved her, he had brought her on a ship and had her go to sleep in a box. Maybe she died in the box and now she was a ghost? Could that be why she heard but could not see the others around her?

Let's see what a man like him would kill for.

Kaylee could die…

Feds could be comin'.

We should have never taken passengers.

Doc ain't goin' near that box.

My legs are cold…

I should have never left the abbey.

That girl is important and if I don't return with her…

River! They can't see River.

Simon! Simon was out there, but maybe he was the one that is dead? The ghost of the old men's sins haunted her, so why couldn't Simon? River's only friends for the last few years had been ghosts. For a brief moment, she thought it would be alright to have Simon and these strange new people haunt her. At least she would no longer be lonely.

"Let's see what a man like you would kill for." A voice, a voice that sounded awfully far away said.

Somewhere far away River heard things that she could not see. Someone-maybe the person who has been talking-kicked something and suddenly River was cold.

Huh.

Merciful Buddha.

Oh, God.

No, that poor girl.

That is one nice lookin' nekkid girl.

River, they'll take her away!

River quietly listened to her new ghost friends.

"I need to check her vitals." Simon urgently told the ghosts.

"Is that what they call it?" One of the ghosts asked, a hint of disgust in his tone.

Simon tried again. "She's not supposed to wake up for another week! The shock could --"

The head ghost cut Simon off. "The shock of what? Waking up? Finding out she's been sold to some border world baron? Or, I'm sorry --was this one for you? Is it true love? 'Cause you seem -"

Deep inside River, voices told her to wake up. _Wake up and tell them!_

She screamed and lurched out of the box. Screaming, River spilt out of the box, crawling backward and breathing hard. Looking around her, wild-eyed, River clearly saw that these new voices were not ghosts. No, not ghosts, but men. Flesh and blood men.

Suddenly, someone was next to her and River could have sworn she heard someone say her name. A man touched her and she screamed again; men made ghosts come into her head and she didn't need anymore.

"River. It's okay. It's okay. I'm here." River knew that voice. Simon! It was Simon and he was holding her and looking into her eyes.

Trying to focus, River felt tears welling up in her eyes. Simon was starting to cry as well, and his attention was fully focused on her. Looking around, River knew the men who were ghosts but weren't were worried and scared and confused. The lucid part of her brain wanted to tell them she always felt the same way.

"River…"

"Simon?" Her voice sounded small and River was still unsure if Simon was a man or a ghost. Of course, if Simon was a man, that still didn't solve anything. River's other ghosts had surfaced again and they began talking to her. Urgently, River whispered through tears: "Simon... They talk to me, they want me to... to talk…"

Simon held her close, wanting to comfort his haunted sister. "They're gone... they're gone and we're safe now, we're safe and I'm here."

River cried and deep inside her, the last sane part of her knew that Simon was wrong. River's ghosts weren't gone and they were by no means safe. Deep inside River's mind, the ghosts that had been her only friends for three years began whispering louder. _"Tell them, River. Help us get up. Tell them! Warn them, please. Make yourself a stone and tell our story." _River only response to them was to begin crying, again.

-The End-


End file.
